10 Tough Machines Made for Winter

The snowiest months of winter are coming—at least, according to historical record. In Denver, the average snowfall for March is just less than 1 foot. In the Midwest, the skies start dumping snow in January and February and then blanket the countryside in March for one last hurrah. So are you ready? These megamachines of winter offer some new technology to help you push through the white stuff with ease.

Daimler Unimog U300

Daimler Unimog U300

Recently dispatched for snow-clearing duties in Berlin, these massive diesel trucks are outfitted with a Cirron SL27 snow plow and a Stratos B20 automatic spreader, giving them a snow-clearing width of almost 10 feet. A spreader, which holds about 70 cubic feet of material, can de-ice a wide swath of parking spaces or roadways in just one drive-by, saving time during a blizzard. The interior cab provides a 360-degree view of the surroundings. The truck can also carry 230 gallons of liquid spray.

Metro-North Snow Machines

Metro-North Snow Machines

If you can't move the snow, why not use a jet engine and melt it away? The MTA, New York City's public transportation agency, recently retrofitted its three railroad snow-removal machines, which are used to keep tracks clear on Metro-North commuter rail lines, with Rolls-Royce Viper turbine aircraft engines that blow air at 600 degrees fahrenheit and provide 2500 pounds of thrust. The jet engines burn about 100 gallons of kerosene per hour, but that's still about 50 percent more efficient than the GE turbines the company used previously.